Elastic top for hose and method of making same



March 1, 1966 R LAWSON 3,237,431

ELASTIC TOP FOR HOSE AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME Filed April 2l, 1964 4 Sheets-Sheet l ATTORNEYS R. N m 0% M@ N L 1 H. .5 T 'MIM m 0M if.' nv ".Ir/A, h-l! .A m@ v'' ,AW w s fw ll .,I.. M. l. 7 Wo 2 F G.

March 1, 1966 Filed April 2l, 1964 R. H. LAWSON 3,237,431

ELASTIC TOP FOR HOSE AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR ROB ERT H. LAWSON BY @A 62.1

ATTORNEYS March l, 1966 R. H. LAWSON 3,237,431

ELASTIC TOP FOR HOSE AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME Filed April 2l, 1964 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 F I G. 7

f I i I' F I G. 8

INVENTOR.

ROBERT H. LAWSON BYJ) @J ATTORNEYS United States Patent O 3,237,431 ELASTIC TOP FOR HSE AND METHDD F MAKING SAME Robert H. Lawson, Pawtucket, RJ., assignor to Lawson Engineering Company, Pawtucket, RJ., a corporation of Rhode Island Filed Apr. 21, 1964, Ser. No. 361,333 7 Claims. (Cl. 66-41) This invention relates generally to hosiery and methods of making the same and particularly to an improved plain knit as contrasted to a rib knit elastic top for mens and childrens hose and the method of making the improved top.

This application is a continuation-in-part of my copending patent application Serial No. 174,791 for Elastic Top for Hose and Method of Making Same, tiled February 21, 1962, now abandoned.

Plain knit tops containing interlaced elastic yarn are very common in mens and childrens hose. Such tops and the method of making them with either covered or bare rubber yarn are disclosed in U.S. Patents to Getaz, Nos. 2,230,402 and 2,230,403.

The use of covered rubber yarn in hosiery tops has been favored because such yarn is satisfactorily handled by knitting machines, is easily held by the stitches of the fabric, and the covering protects -the rubber from deterioration due to exposure to light and oily substances.

Although bare rubber yarn is less expensive than covered rubber yarn, its use has not been favored because knitting machines do not handle it as well as they handle covered rubber yarn, the stitches of the fabric do not hold it as securely as desired and it deteriorates when exposed to light and oily substances. In addition, the feel of bare rubber yarn against the skin of the wearer is unpleasant. The advent of spandex yarns, for example, Lycra, Vyrene, etc., changes all this.

Those yarns haveI the elasticity of rubber, but do not deteriorate under the inuence of light or oily substances. They Vare so ne that they bury themselves in the fabric, and hence come into contact with the skin of the wearer little if at all. As a result, it is economically desirable to incorporate bare spandex in hose tops. Bare spandex yarn may be handled with conventional tension type stretching and feeding devices, although it is preferable to handle it with specially designed tension devices.

Because bare spandex yarns, in addition to being fully as slippery as bare rubber yarns, are smaller in diameter, they are harder to hold in place in a fabric because they tend to slip through the fabric when interlaced therein in a conventional manner. Accordingly, a principal object of this invention is to lock bare spandex yarn in the plain knit hose top so that the yarn will not slip through the fabric stitches.

Multiple rounds of an elastic yarn through the selvage course of the fabric help prevent the elastic yarn from slipping and provide a smooth edge for the selvage. However, such multiplicity of rounds tends to make the stocking top bite into the leg and cut otf circulation. Thus, it is also an object of this invention to form a selvage for a plain knit hose top with `a minimum number of rounds, while preserving the smoothness of its edge. Other objects of the invention will become apparent when the following description is read with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE l is a fragmentary diagrammatic View of the upper portion of a plain knit elastic hose top showing the selvage;

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary diagrammatic view of the hose top at the start of the leg;

FIGURE 3 is a modification of the selvage shown in FIGURE 1;

3,237,431 Patented Mar. 1, 1966 ICC FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary developed view of the knitting cams for a circular knitting machine designed to carry out this invention, showing jacks for actuating the needles;

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary perspective view showing the making of the top edge or selvage of the hose top of FIGURE l;

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary perspective view showing interlacing of the spandex yarn during the knitting of the hose top;

FIGURE 7 is a fragmentary perspective view which shows the locking of the spandex yarn in the fabric at the completion of the hose top; and

FIGURE 8 is a fragmentary perspective vieW which shows the making of the top edge or selvage of the hose top of FIGURE 3.

Referring particularly to FIGURE 1, the numeralI 10 generally designates a hose top knit with a single set of needles (for example, on a Scott & Williams spiral machine) and commonly called a plain knit top. The top 10 is provided with an edge course 11 knit from inelastic yarn 16, and includes a round 13 of elastic or spandex yarn 12, preferably bare rather than covered. The round 13 of elastic or spandex yarn 12 passes through each sinker loop of the edge course 11. Edge course or selvage 11 is doubled in alternate wales with knitted stitches of elastic yarn 12, as shown at 14. Elastic yarn 12 is floated across the intervening wales in course 11. The next following course 11 also has elastic yarn 12 knit in the alternate wales with the inelastic yarn 16, as `shown lat 14. Thereafter the elastic yarn may be interlaced into the fabric in several consecutive courses as at 12A followed by interlacing it into spaced courses, or it may be consistently interlaced into every course or alternate courses following the last course in which the elastic yarn is knit in alternate Wales. Preferably, edge course 11 and the next following course 11 are knit tighter than the courses in the remainder of the top.

In this specification and in the claims hereof, an interlaced yarn means a yarn which passes in back of alternate needle wales in one course of a fabric and which passes through the sinker wales so as to pass in back of the intervening needle wales in the preceding adjacent course.

It should be noted that throughout this specification the word alternate is used in a broad sense to mean, for example, every other, every fourth, or various other alternating groupings.

In the specification and claims hereof, it is to be further understood that bare elastic and uncovered elastic are used interchangeably.

Referring now to FIGURE 2, in the terminal course 15 of the top 10 the spandex yarn 12 is knit, along with the main yarn 16, into doubled stitches 17 in several alternate Wales. Thereupon, the spandex yarn 12 is removed from active knitting, clamped and severed from the fabric. This knitting of the elastic yarn 12 with the inelastic yarn 16 prevents the elastic yarn from slipping through the fabric stitches. Following course 15, the plain courses 18 of the leg of the stocking are knit.

The cam arrangement of FIGURE 4 includes run down stitch cam 22, reverse stitch cam 24, top center cam 26, rise cam 28 for raising the needles to tuck height, cam 30 for lowering the needles to welt level, jack cam 32 for raising jacks 33 selected by reader cams 36, thus raising selected needles, cam 34 for pushing jacks olf cam 32, so that the selected needles rise to tuck height only, cam 40 for lowering the selected needles to welt level and rise cam 42 for raising all needles to tuck height. Spandex yarn 12 passes from a cone thereof to a suitable tension device (not shown), from whence it passes through a feed linger 44 to the needles 29.

When starting a stocking incorporating a top 10 of this invention, the needles iirst make one or more revolutions without taking yarn, and their latches are opened in a well known manner. Cam 30 is advanced to the needle cylinder to lower all needles to welt level, and cam 40 is retracted. Jacks 33 under selected needles ride up cam 32 and are pushed olf by cam 34, after their needles reach tuck height. Feed finger 44 then moves into yarn feeding position, and suitably stretched spandex yarn 12 is delivered to it. The machine now makes fone revolution, and the spandex yarn 12 is taken by the hooks of the selected needles to form round 13. In this connection, since cam 40 is out of action, after the selected needles receive the elastic yarn in their hooks they continue at tuck height. In the meantime, the intervening needles are raised to tuck height by cam 42, and pass in front of the elastic yarn to ntertwine it about the needles. This intertwining binds the yarn of round 13 about the needles so that it rises with the needles as they pass over cam 24. The needles pass through the normal knitting wave, i.e., over cam 24 and under cams 26 and 22, resulting in the yarn of round 13 being pulled below the nebs of the now retracted sinkers 46. The sinkers then advance so that the yarn is taken and held in their throats to prevent it from rising with the needles as the needles rise up cam 28.

When the needles approach the knitting cams .for the second time, the elastic yarn of round 13 is retained by the sinkers on the latches of the selected needles, and as those needles clear over cam 24 that yarn passes below their latches.

During the next or second revolution of the machine, the spandex yarn again is taken by the hooks of the selected needles, but with round 13 held on their latches, as shown in FIG. 5. The intervening needles rise up cam 42 passing in front of the newly taken yarn, and thus the yarn rises with the needles as they are raised to clear level by cam 24. Accordingly, there is elastic yarn in the hooks of the selected needles when the needles reach the throat plate (not shown) for the second time. Inelastic yarn 16 now is fed to the hooks of all the needles, and as the needles are drawn down by cam 22 the yarn 12 of round 13 is cast off the selected needles. The edge course 11 shown in FIGURE 1 now is on the needles, with the elastic yarn of round 13, taken during the first revolution, passing through all the sinker loops of the inelasticyarn 16 to form a selvage. The second round of elastic yarn was knit with the inelastic yarn 16 by the selected needles to form the double stitches 14.

The yarns will be similarly fed to and knit by the needles for course 11', resulting in the elastic yarn 12 being knit at selected wales 14 while the inelastic yarn 16 is knit at all Wales. The next course or two may be knit as was course 11, if desired. t

After completion of course 11', or the l'ast course like v it, cam 40 is advanced to the cylinder. This will result in the elastic yarn being pulled below the nebs of the sinkers by the selected needles, so that it will be held down by the sinker nebs as the needles rise up cam 42.

As shown in FIGURE 6, during knitting of the top 10 the selected needles pul'l elastic yarn 12 down for engagement into the throats of sinkers 46, to interlace the elastic yarn with the main yarn 16 in the manner described in U.S. Patent No. 2,083,394. Jacks 33 and their associated needles 29 are selected in a conventional manner, and raised by the cam 32. The selected needles are raised to tuck height ahead of the cam 40, which lowers them to welt level after they take the elastic yarn for interlacing. The selected needles pull the elastic yarn below the nebs of retracted sinkers 46, whereupon the sinkers 46 rnove inwardly, as shown in FIGURE 6, while all the needles rise up cam 42. Thus, the elastic yarn extends in front of the selected needles and in back of the intervening needles. When the needles are raised over cam 24 to clear their latches before taking the main yarn 16 for knitting, the elastic yarn, held in the sinker throats, passes below the latches of the Selected needles 29.

IFollowing course 11, three or four courses may be knit with selected needles taking elastic yarn and interlacing it in the fabric. If desired, the jacks may then be selected at alternate courses only, so that needles take the elastic yarn at alternate courses. The needles may be selected in any order desired, for example, every other needle, every fourth needle, or in any othergrouping.

When suicient courses have been knit to give the desired length of hose top, cam 40 is retracted while selected needles continue to receive elastic yarn 4from linger 44 at tuck level. The intervening needles now rise up cam 42 to tuck level in front of the elastic yarn to bind it in the hooks of the selected needles. Thus, the elastic yarn is retained in the hooks of the selected needles while they clear their latches of loops from the previous course (FIG- URE 7), take the main yarn 16 and pass down stitch cam 22 to knit. As a result, main yarn 16 and elastic yarn 12 are knit together to form doubled stitches 17 (FIGURE 2). After several of the selected needles have knit in this manner, the spandex yarn is removed from active knitting by raising feed finger 44, as shown in FIGURE 7. In this manner, the elastic yarn is more securely locked into the fabric than would be the case if it were removed from knitting while still interlacing.

Referring now to FIGURES 3 and 8, the numeral 100 generally designates a modified hose top, knit with a single set of needles. The top is provided with an edge course or selvage 102, which includes two rounds 103 of elastic yarn 104 passing through the loops of course 102. Main yarn 116 in course 102 is doubled in alternate wales with elastic yarn 104 to form doubled stitches 114. The following course 102' is also .formed with yarn 116 and elastic yarn 104 knit into double stitches in alternate wales. Courses 102 and 102 are preferably knit tighter than the remainder of the top 100. Following course 102', the spandex yarn is incorporated into the fabric in alternate courses by interlacing.

In starting top 100, cam 30 is active andy lowers all needles to welt level. Selected jacks'33 are raised by the cam 32, and are pushed off cam 32 by the cam 34 when their needles reach tuck height. Cam 40 is out of action, in consequence of which the selected needles receive the elastic yarn in their hooks and continue at tuck height. Carn 42 then raises the intervening needles to tuck height. Thus, the elastic yarn is positioned in the hooks of selected needles and in back of intervening needles.

As shown in FIGURES 3 and S, the elastic yarn preferably is fed to every fourth needle during the iirst revolution in which the bar needles take the elastic yarn, and is fed to the intervening fourth needles during the second revolution. Cam 24 is retracted from the needle cylinder during these first two revolutions. This results in the needles approaching cam 22 while still at tuck height. The needles ride down cam 22 pulling the yarn in their hooks below the nebs of the sinkers, where the yarn remains when the sinkers are advanced. Since the needles can rise only to tuck height, the elastic yarn of the first of rounds 103 in front of the selected needles will ride back into the needle hooks, as the needles ride down stitch cam 22, and will not be cast off.

As the needles pass nger 44 for the third time, elastic yarn preferably is fed to the hooks of every other needle. As the needles, with rounds 103 on their latches and with elastic yarn in the hooks of every other needle, approach cam 24 that cam is advanced to raise the needles to clear level so that the elastic yarn rounds 103 will pass below the latches. The elastic yarn in the hooks of every other needle rises with the needles (FIGURE 8). Main yarn 116 now is fed to the needles, and thus during this third revolution edge course 102 is formed. The two rounds 103 of elastic yarn combine so that one or the other round passes through every sinker loop of the main yarn 16, and both rounds pass in alternation in front of and behind the doubled stitches or needleloops 114 and criss-cross through the float loops 120.

The fourth revolution of the machine Will knit course 102 comprising main yarn 116 knit in all wales and elastic yarn 104 knit at alternate wales.

Following the fourth revolution of the needle cylinder, cam 40 is brought into action, whereupon the selected needles, raised by cam 32 to tuck height, are lowered t0 welt level resulting in the spandex yarn being interlaced into the fabric in the manner previously described, At this time, the needle control (not shown) is changed so that movement of the needles relative to the sinkers results in formation of stitches of the desired longer length throughout the top, the edge courses having been formed of tighter knit stitches. The top is completed as described hereinbefore in connection with the embodiment of FIG- URE. 2.

This invention is particularly well suited for the use of bare spandex yarn. However, the invention has advantages when any elastic yarn is used, whether bare or covered.

The modification illustrated in FIGURES 3 and 8 may in turn be modied in various ways. For example, the two rounds 103 of elastic yarn may be fed to every other needle, instead of every fourth needle. The elastic yarn must be knit in the edge course 102 and the next following course, but it may be knit by needles spaced more than one needle apart.

It will be understood, of course, that the present invention, as described and shown, is susceptible to various changes and modifications which may be made without any departure from the general principles or real spirit of the invention. Accordingly, it is intended to claim the present invention broadly, as well as specifically, as indicated in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A method of manufacturing a plain knit stretchable top for hosiery on a knitting machine having sinkers and a single set of needles including the steps of (a) passing at least one round of bare elastic yarn in front of alternate needles and in back of intervening needles without forming knitted stitches therefrom,

(b) forming a course of knitted stitches from inelastic and bare elastic yarns, while casting the round of bare elastic yarn off the needles so as to form a selvedge course knit of bare elastic and inelastic yarns with the rst round of bare elastic yarn passing through sinker loops of said first course,

(c) forming at least one additional course of knitted stitches from inelastic and bare elastic yarns.

2. A plain knit stretchable hosiery top knit of inelastic yarn further having:

(a) a selvage course having a bare elastic yarn knit into selected wales and including at least one round of bare elastic yarn passing through sinker loops without being formed into knitted stitches, and

(b) at least the next succeeding course having bare elastic yarn knit into selected wales.

3. The invention of claim 2 wherein a bare elastic round passes through each sinker loop of the selvage course.

4. The invention of claim 2 wherein the selvage course includes at least two rounds of bare elastic yarn, and wherein the rounds pass through different sinker loops.

5. The invention of claim l including the further step of then forming at least one additional course of knitted stitches from inelastic yarn While passing a bare elastic yarn in front of selected needles and behind the intervening needles.

6. A method of manufacturing a plain knit stretchable top for hosiery on a knitting machine having sinkers and a single set of needles including the steps of:

(a) passing at least one round of bare elastic yarn in front of alternate needles and in back of intervening needles while passing at least one other round of bare elastic yarn in front of the needles behind which said first mentioned round is passed and behind the needles in front of which said first mentioned round is passed, without forming knitted stitches from either of said rounds of bare elastic yarn,

(b) forming a course of knitted stitches from inelastic and bare elastic yarns, while casting said rounds of bare elastic yarn olf the needles so as to form a selvage course knit of bare elastic and inelastic yarns with said rounds of bare elastic yarn passing through sinker loops of said lirst course, and

(c) forming at least one additional course of knitted stitches from inelastic and bare elastic yarns.

7. The method of claim 5 further including the step of forming a terminal course containing knitted stitches of both inelastic and elastic yarns.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,816,809 7/1931 Lawson et al. 66-41 2,138,748 11/1938 Sherlin et al 66-9 2,139,606 12/1938 Sholz 66-172 2,173,646 9/1939 Bunton 66-172 2,213,144 8/1940 McAdams 66-172 2,264,159 11/1941 Elrod 66-172 2,289,580 7/ 1942 Lawson 66-172 2,333,870 11/1943 Lawson 66-172 2,377,490 6/ 1945 Getaz 66-9 2,383,986 9/1945 Page 66-9 2,466,885 4/ 1949 Floyd 66-172 2,765,643 10/ 1956 Marquis 66-172 3,078,697 2/ 1963 Johnson 66--172 X FOREIGN PATENTS 428,220 5/ 1935 Great Britain.

DONALD W. PARKER, Primary Examiner.

RUSSELL C. MADER, Examiner.

W. C. REYNOLDS, Assistant Examiner. 

2. A PLAIN KNIT STRETCHABLE HOSIERY TOP KNIT OF INELASTIC YARN FURTHER HAVING: (A) A SELVAGE COURSE HAVING A BARE ELASTIC YARN KNIT INTO SELECTED WALES AND INCLUDING AT LEAST ONE ROUND OF BARE ELASTIC YARN PASSING THROUGH SINKER LOOPS WITHOUT BEING FORMED INTO KNITTED STITCHES, AND (B) AT LEAST THE NEXT SUCCEEDING COURSE HAVING BARE ELASTIC YARN KNIT INTO SELECTED WALES. 